Bedfordshire is a county in the East of England.[1] It is bounded by Hertfordshire to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Northamptonshire to the north, and Buckinghamshire to the west.[2] It has an area of 1,235 square kilometres (477 sq mi), and population estimated in 2015 at 630,000, with an increase of 10% over the previous ten years.[3] The county town is Bedford, and the name is first recorded in the treaty in about 879 between King Alfred the Great and Guthrum, which divided English and Danish territory by a line which went through Bedford.[4]
This is steeply sloping chalk pasture, which has a wide variety of grasses and flowers. A chalk stream along the valley floor adds wetland flora. Six orchid species have been recorded, including the fragrant orchid and bee orchid. Another notable plant is the pasque flower.[8]
This site has interglacial mollusk and mammal fossils, but it is uncertain which warmer period is represented. The lowest level also has Paleolithic stone tools.[9]
The site has varied habitats with a large area of unimproved grassland, which cattle help to maintain. Features include a disused quarry and medieval cultivation terraces. It has a rare plant, Bunium bulbocastanum, and beetle odontaeus armiger.[12]
The site is described by Natural England as the best surviving example in Bedfordshire of heathland on the thin acidic soils of the Lower Greensand Ridge. It also has areas of marsh and woodland.[15]
The site is calcareous grassland which is rich in plant species, some of which are uncommon.[19] Birds include lapwings and buzzards, and there are butterflies such as dingy and grizzled skippers. There are also the remains of ancient strip lynchet fields.[16]
This marsh has a variety of habitats, including a scarce quaking bog. Many species are now uncommon due to changes in agricultural practices. it has several springs, with floating sweet-grass and brooklime and areas dominated by rushes.[22]
This is a 3 kilometre long steep escarpment between Dunstable and Whipsnade. The slopes have a typical chalk downland flora, and there are also habitats of scrub and tall herbs. The site is also important for butterflies.[24]
The site has flooded gravel pits which were worked until about 1945. Other habitats are neutral grassland, scrub and broadleaved woodland.[28] It is one of the best sites in Bedfordshire for dragonflies and damselflies.[27]
This is a rich valley mire, and the largest area of wetland in Bedfordshire. Eight species of sphagnum bog moss have been recorded, including one which is nationally rare. The site has areas of woodland as well as wet grassland.[30]
The site is chalk grassland with areas of dense scrub, and it has many plants which are rare nationally and locally.[32] It has a wide variety of wild flowers and more than twenty species of butterflies.[33]
This large disused chalk quarry is a rare example of standing water in chalk. It is important both ornithologically and for its range of dragonflies. There are two marl lakes, which have aquatic plants and molluscs, and there are fens in a waterlogged area between the lakes.[37]
The site is a large working quarry which exposes fossiliferous chalk rocks with many rare fossils including ammonites. It is described by Natural England as "an unrivalled locality for stratigraphic studies in the Upper Cretaceous".[40][41]
The site has the largest remaining area of woodland in Bedfordshire, together with lowland heath, acidic grassland and some small ponds. There are a number of rare plant species, including great woodrush, wood vetch and saw-wort.[44]
This site is ancient ash and maple woodland on heavy clay, a habitat which has become rare in lowland England. It is biologically diverse, with a number of rare species. Glebe Meadows has a rich variety of species due to its traditional management.[46]
The site is a flat bottomed valley with steep sides. The unimproved chalk grassland has several nationally rare plants, including moon carrot, spotted catsear and pasque flower. The ancient strip lynchet field system is of archaeological interest.[49][50]
The site is ash and maple woodland on heavy clay, a habitat which has become scarce in lowland England. It also has areas of damp grassland, and a grassland valley. It is an important site for butterflies, including the rare black hairstreak.[51][52]
The site is unimproved pasture on the Lower Greensand Ridge. Most of it is neutral grassland with many grass and herb species, and there are small areas of acidic grassland. An open pond has aquatic plants, while two ponds which have been filled in have a varied marsh vegetation.[54]
There are two separate meadows in the site. The eastern meadow has two ridges, which have short grass, a moss layer and many herbs. The western meadow is a steep-sided valley which has similar habitats.[55]
This is ancient mixed deciduous and coniferous woodland, with rides and ponds. It has a wide variety of invertebrates, including some which are nationally rare, such as the tiny moth, Dioryctria mutatella and three sawfly species.[56]
The site is on the Lower Greensand in the valley of the River Ouzel. It has marshland with a number of springs, and it has rich plant communities. On higher areas there is acidic grassland.[57]
This Lower Cretaceous site exposes layers dating to the Albian and Aptian, between 125 and 100 million years ago. It has one of the most diverse Albian fossils faunas in the world.[59]
This site is wet ash and maple woodland which has an exceptional variety of flora, such as wild daffodil and herb paris. Extensive rides add to its value for invertebrates and flowering plants.[60]
This wet wood is mainly ash and maple. It shrub layer has species indicative of ancient woodland, such as yellow archangel, wood millet and oxlip, a national rarity. The site also has species-rich rides, ponds and diverse bird species.[61]
This marsh in a small valley has a wide variety of plant species, including some rare in the country, such as sharpflowered rush and blunt-flowered rush. It also has springs, neutral grassland in higher areas and mature hedgerows.[62]
The site is heathland on the acidic soil of the Lower Greensand ridge, which is now comparatively rare. It also has areas of unimproved grassland and birch woodland. Additional habitats are damp areas and seasonal pools, which have some uncommon species such as distant sedge and carnation sedge.[63]
Much of the site is unimproved chalk grassland with many plants which are now rare. Orchids include Herminium monorchis and Aceras anthropophorum. There is also beech forest with a ground layer including primroses.[64]
The wood is a wet valley of alder, fed by springs, and a small stream runs down to the lake. There is fen vegetation in more open areas. The lake has a characteristic population of breeding birds, and an island has one of only two surviving heronries in the county.[67]
The site is marshland along the banks of the River Great Ouse. The river, marshes and pastures form varied habitats. The marshes are floristically rich, with the largest one being dominated by great horsetail. The wetland communities and Jurassic limestone grassland are rare habitats in eastern England.[68]
This site's varied habitats are fen, lakes, chalk grassland, scrub and woodland. Invertebrates include sixteen species of dragonfly and damselfly and twenty-one of butterfly. The site has the largest English colony of the Chiltern gentian.[70]
The site is wet woodland which has structural and biological diversity. The most common trees are pedunculate oak and ash and on heavy clay, and bluebells and dog's mercury dominate the ground flora.[72]
This site is a base-rich marsh which has diverse plant life. It has springs along the edge of glacial gravel, and this produces wet marsh which is dominated by meadowsweet. Other habitats are neutral grassland, swamp carr woodland, mature ash woodland, a stream and hedgerows.[73]
This site is grass chalkland, which is a habitat under threat.There are a number of rare plant species, including great pignut, and butterflies such as the chalkhill blue and the nationally rare Duke of Burgundy.[77]
This is grassland with a rich variety of plant species, including some that are now rare. There are a number of orchids and a wide variety of invertebrates, including butterflies such as the common blue, chalkhill blue, and the scarce small blue and Duke of Burgundy.[79][80]
The site displays the base of the Totternhoe Stone. It is a lime mud with an extensive deposit of late Cretaceous shark teeth, some of species which have not been fully described, so it will be an important resource for further research.[82]
The site is acidic mire. It has three ponds which have unusual plant communities, two unimproved meadows, some damp birch woodland and a small stream.[83]
The site is a rare example of neutral grassland on clay which has not been improved agriculturally. It is a flood meadow which has been maintained to provide hay with grazing during the winter, and it has a rich variety of plant species.[84]
^ abcdMaps and citations for each site are taken from the Natural England database. The area and location of the site is shown on the citation. The listing is as on 10 December 2015.
References
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^ ab"Biddenham Pit citation"(PDF). Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Archived(PDF) from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 24 August 2015.
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^ ab"Pegsdon Hills and Hoo Bit". Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire. Archived from the original on 5 September 2015. Retrieved 24 August 2015.
^"Map of Deacon Hill". Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Archived from the original on 21 January 2016. Retrieved 24 August 2015.
^ ab"Double Arches Pit citation"(PDF). Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Archived from the original(PDF) on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 25 August 2015.
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^ ab"Fancott Woods and Meadows". Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire. Archived from the original on 5 September 2015. Retrieved 25 August 2015.
^ ab"Felmersham Gravel Pits". Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire. Archived from the original on 5 September 2015. Retrieved 26 August 2015.
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^"Nine Acres Pit citation"(PDF). Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Archived(PDF) from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 28 August 2015.
^"Nine Acres Pit citation"(PDF). Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Archived(PDF) from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 28 August 2015.
^"Odell Great Wood citation"(PDF). Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Archived(PDF) from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 28 August 2015.
^"Potton Woodcitation"(PDF). Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Archived(PDF) from the original on 24 October 2012. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
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^ ab"Sandy Warren citation"(PDF). Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Archived from the original(PDF) on 25 September 2015. Retrieved 28 August 2015.
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